@amywood20 I would encourage you to get several opinions about your C spine. Surgeons use different spaces, cages,etc, and plates on the front of the spine. If it is only one level to be fixed, it can be done with a bone graft and no hardware, and not all surgeons would offer that, but mine did at Mayo which is what I wanted. Hardware brings the possibility of complications if something is dislodged or a screw backs out. Patients can feel the plate in their neck. With my asthma, I didn't want anything extra in my neck taking up space, so I had only a bone graft. I stayed in a neck brace until fused at 3 months, and it as worth it to not have hardware. My neck also used to be straight, but since surgery, and my therapy, I have my normal curve back without a surgeon rebuilding it for me. I don't get pain with weather changes like a lot of C spine surgery patients with hardware do. It's better without rods because my range of motion is normal except that I cannot touch my chin to my chest, but it is darn close. My head turning is normal. If you have hardware placed on your spine to put a curve in, you probably will not have normal ranges of motion, and the longer the fused portion is, the greater the stress it will put on the adjacent segments that can move which raises the risk of spine surgeries in the future. Plates also do this and the fusion shrinks as it heals, so the plate gets longer in relation. If the plate rubs on the adjacent disc, it can cause injury and wear a lot sooner. There are immune reactions to foreign materials too, but none with a bone graft and my surgeon said it heals best with just bone. You can always elect to do the curve rebuild later if you think it is necessary after your recovery. My physical therapist advised against surgical intervention for the lordotic curve, and my curve is normal as long as I don't trigger muscle spasms in my chest and neck with over exertion. I also now how to fix it if it happens, and most of the time I feel normal without being aware that I did have surgery.

I think you are right that bearing weight on your hands will cause pain because it's compressing everything and you already have tightness between your chest and neck. Just the muscle spasms from a spine issue will do that. It would bother me too to do that because of TOS, and I am not as strong as I was before my spine injury and the muscle atrophy that came with it.

I still think you could have TOS issues, and your doctors are not even thinking about that possibility, as they are mentioning other diseases as a cause without you having a test to confirm that. That is just guessing. Also the the snapping in your feet and ankles happens to me too. I've had plantar fasciitis, and that starts with tightness in the hips, thighs or pelvis that translates down to the feet. I get snapping in a knuckle on my thumb, and my therapist has me pull on the joint and twist first in the direction is goes easily, and then in the opposite direction. I hold that with a gentle pull, and it reseats the joint . That is the same thing that happens in lower limbs, so myofascial release will probably help as it loosens everything. It's the tightness and twisting in the body that causes alignment issues, and over time, wear and tear on joints. When you subconsciously brace against something it gets worse too. I still guard my left shoulder and raise it, and I have to learn to stop doing it.

Your neck might feel better with a microwaved heat wrap to relax the muscles and it can act like a neck brace. I did that a lot before my surgery. Topical Arnica gel helps too calm nerves and inflammation. I have a list of questions I can find for the spine surgeon if you want it. Take it easy and don't push too hard for a faster recover. You body needs to take the time that it needs.